Thursday, March 8, 2018

NOT GOOD: Even More Tariffs Coming

The Trump administration is expected to roll out within weeks a series of tariffs, investment restrictions and other actions against China, reports the Financial Times.

Trump is using Beijing’s intellectual property practices as cover for the tariffs he wants to place on anyway. But companies should be responsible for protecting their own intellectual property, especially in foreign lands, not the United States government.

If I want to take a tour of war-torn Syria, will the US government provide me with protection? Didn't think so.

FT properly observes, Republicans in Congress and former trade officials also express concern that US trade representative Robert Lighthizer, the cabinet member overseeing the IP investigation, is more interested in starting a fight than extracting tangible concessions from Beijing.

Notes FT, while the tariffs on steel and aluminum would hit almost $50bn in annual US imports — largely from countries other than China — the new actions aimed at Beijing would hit a trading relationship that was worth more than $635bn last year.

In a sign that action on China may be imminent, Mr Trump tweeted on Wednesday that his administration was “acting swiftly” to curtail intellectual property theft. “We cannot allow this to happen as it has for many years!” he said.